Title: The Tear's Shards

Author: Ayame

Disclaimer: I don't own Chrono Cross or it's characters. They belong to SQUARESOFT.

Rating: PG

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Like my first story, The Blood on the Dagger, this takes place at the climax of Disk 1 when Serge and Lynx switch bodies. This is Serge's pov, Oh, By the way, Sorry for taking soooo long to get this one out! 7 mo. Yeah… too long…

Whelp… I hope you guys like this one! I can't believe it took me so long to actually finish it. Blargh! Anyhow, please tell me if you like it as much as the first. I'm not so sure I like it as much… I tend to think the first was better because it seemed to have more feeling for me. Well, tell me what you think! I'd like to know!!

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The Tear's Shards

There are two sides to every coin. Life and death… Love and hate… They are all the same.

A blue colored light emerged from the tiny, crystal-like fractures inside the Tear. I set one end of my swallow on the ground and held the long weapon in place. The hollow sound of the bladed rod touching the stone floor reached my ears. I tightened my grip, feeling my knuckles turn white.

I looked away from the treasured jewel and brought my gaze to Lynx. He stood just beyond the Dragon's Tear, watching and waiting. His expression was calm, as though he had all the time in the world, and he knew it. His words echoed in my mind. Serge… have you ever questioned who you really are? What has been the significance of your existence up until now? On that ominous day ten years ago, the boundary of time and space was torn, and a part of me, in fact, died… I looked at the Tear once more, noting how it's power became more intense with each passing moment. And as I watched, I saw my reflection gazing back at me. Then my features contorted until they were no longer my own, but those of the one who opposed me. Lynx. My swallow slipped from my fingers and I felt myself stumble back several paces. I gripped my head, feeling my knees grow weak; trying to wrestle the wrenching ache that came to me… that invaded my mind and took me captive. I was on my knees, screaming. I couldn't help myself. It felt as though thousands of tiny ants were marching through my head, and each step they took was like a searing fire, destroying my consciousness. The pain grew more intense, more blinding, like the magick of the Dragon's Tear. I felt nauseous and dizzy. Almost as suddenly as it had begun, the pain subsided. I blinked several times, trying to get the foggy haze over my eyes to clear.

"Serge… You alright, mate?" I could hear Kid's concerned voice somewhere in front of me. I started to answer, but was startled when someone answered for me.

"Yes, Kid. I'm fine." I closed my mouth. I didn't say that… did I? And finally, my vision had cleared. I was standing just beyond the Dragon's Tear watching Kid, Glenn, and… myself… I shook my head and looked at my hands… The hands of Lynx. This can't be happening… this can't be happening… I… was…. Lynx…? But how? I looked at the others. Lynx stood up and brushed off his clothes. His eyes were taunting… telling me he had won. But how had he done this?

You cannot defeat me, Serge… This is because denying me is the same as erasing your very existence. The words slammed into me like an ocean wave against the sands of a beach. Denying… him… I shook my head again and stepped back. My eyes darted around the stone encasement that served as a tower to the Fort of the Dragoons. There was no where to turn. The sound of my voice caught my attention.

"What are you doing, Lynx?" Lynx… this evil version of me… this demon who stole my identity smirked at my confusion before turning to Kid. "Now's your chance, Kid. Kill him!" She nodded and pulled out her dagger.

"Y-yeah." She moved toward me slowly, not taking her eyes from me as she picked up speed. I looked at the weapon in my hands. This scythe. This object that brought death. My eyes darted forward. To use it on Kid? I shook my head and backed away more as she swung at me with her dagger. Glenn and Lynx were by her, almost instantly, ready to take me down. I didn't fight back. How could I? Glenn and Kid were my friends. I tried to block the attacks, but this weapon of mine, this scythe was a foreign object to me…

I grimaced in pain, trying not to show my fear and confusion. But I failed. I could feel their weapons cutting though my clothing, and my skin. I could feel the warm blood seeping from my wounds… the many wounds I had received. In the end, it was only Lynx who was so set on destroying me. Kid had been the first to stop attacking me. I had looked upon her with pleading eyes, but said nothing. An air of confusion passed over her features. Then Glen stopped, after noting Kid's hesitation. But Lynx… he was set on my demise. But of course he would be. I did, after all, oppose him in whatever twisted way he'd decided I had in that mind of his. Grimacing, I backed away, falling to one knee. I couldn't take it anymore. Supporting my weight on the weapon known for death, I took in a breath slowly, glaring up at myself… at Lynx. There are two sides to every coin. Life and death… Love and hate… They are all the same. He gave the slightest hint of a smile before directing his speech to Kid.

"You did it, Kid. Now! Finish him off!" The words pummeled into me with anxiety. The weapon clattered from my grip, and my breaths came in shallow gasps. It felt muggy in here. The dank surface of the stone floor on which I was kneeling seemed to tilt beneath me. Clenching my teeth together, I glared at the ground before looking up at Kid. She couldn't…. Kid… you had to know it was me. You had to! But my silent pleas went unheard. I opened my mouth to try and speak, but no sound progressed. What was it? Was the voice of a demi-human so different from that of a human that I didn't know how to work it? But much to my surprise, Kid didn't come after me.

She watched me carefully, taking in my crippled form. My fallen form that was being slowly drained of life. Her blue gaze holding something lining the contempt she'd felt for Lynx all this time… but also a hint of confusion. It was as though she wasn't sure about what to do. My eyes darted to Glenn. He watched me for a moment before turning toward General Viper. His eyes had held… not menace, but pity. I watched the eyes of the stone dragons lining the circular room. They glowed with ferocity… with an intense burning that spoke of lies and truth. And finally, I looked to myself… My eyes… blue and cold… deadly and cruel.

"What are you waiting for?" My voice came, snapping with impatience. I ground my teeth together. If only I could speak in this wretched form… Lynx continued to speak. "Here. Give me your dagger, Kid. I'll avenge Lucca's death for you." He moved toward Kid, who had made no move to unsheathed the dagger she'd put away. He pulled it from her belt and started toward me. I pushed myself up a little, needing to escape… but it was a fruitless labor.

"Wait!" Kid's shout cut across the near silent humming of the magick in the room. I lowered my head a little. Did she know? Could she tell? My form, which had been stalking toward me with deadly intent stopped and glanced over at the blonde young woman. She glared at him, suspicion in her eyes. "Not once did I ever mention Lucca's name to you, Serge." She spoke through clenched teeth. Anxiety rose within me. Kid knew… Kid knew… but I felt this was not going to turn out well. I looked across the room toward Glenn, who was huddled over the General, he glanced up momentarily but went back to studying the fallen man. With a throaty growl, I tried to push up some more. Tried to will the heaviness of the blood soaking into the uniform I wore to disappear, making it easier. Tried to wish away the pain I felt, and the dizziness that claimed my senses. I glanced toward myself and Kid, only to have my blood chilled.

He grabbed her roughly by the arm and plunged her dagger into her stomach. She screamed, a broken piercing scream. My jaw dropped as a whirl of colors flashed through my mind. There was blood on the dagger. It dripped from the steel blade like droplets of water. I watched her fall. I'd seen her pain. My eyes were dark as I looked into hers… pleading, and somewhat shocked. "Why… Serge…" I could hear her thoughts echoing through my own. Thoughts of a stranger I'd never seen or met, but she knew me nonetheless, and I knew her. She slid weakly to her knees, collapsing to the cold stone floor of the Fort in which we stood. Blood, as crimson as the clothing she wore seeped out of her, just as her fiery spirit did. Then, with all the menace and evil of one so impure, I smiled. I had seen this before. The very dream I had before I'd even met kid. A foreshadowing, but I'd written it off as nonsense. A deadly nonsense it'd turned out to be.

I watched in horror as my vision was brought to life. Kid hit the floor, carrying all of her weight with her. I screamed. I tried to shout her name… to jump to my feet… to shout for her safety… but the only sound that progressed from within my throat was a vicious howl. A savage growl filled with anger, hate, and sorrow. I watched as I… Lynx, who had taken my form… Lynx, who's dark blue eyes carried menace and hatred… my eyes… looked upon Kid with scorn. Glenn was up and moving by now. He'd shouted something, using my name when he referred to the devil standing over Kid. But he fell almost immediately as a blast of pure energy was sent in his direction. Then, he turned to me, his eyes glowing. There are two sides to every coin. Life and death… Love and hate… They are all the same.

My body… my form… my eyes… me? Doubts began to float through my mind. They'd been there since the day I returned to Arni looking for Leena, only to find that no one recognized me. My eyes went to Kid. I thought about how I'd met her. The Dragoons after me had called me a ghost, but she hadn't… the doubts crept over my nerves. Maybe… maybe I wasn't me… I looked to Lynx… Serge… maybe… Clenching my teeth together, I wanted to kill him.

"Look at yourself… Heh, heh, heh. Lynx!" A sinister smile crossed those lips before he continued, stopping next to the stand that held the glowing Dragons Tear. "Excellent! The enmity is growing! The only thing pure in this world is enmity!" He raised his arms as though calling on dark and ancient powers. His eyes went to the Tear as he picked it up, cradling the sacred jewel in the palms of his hands. "Well, then, the time has come for the curtain to fall. Your services are no longer needed. Even your very existence is worthless…" Vanishing from sight, he reappeared next to me, glowering down at me with those intense blue eyes. His words from before echoed in my mind like a sharp and hot blade slicing through butter. Serge… have you ever questioned who you really are? What has been the significance of your existence up until now… He grinned. "Farewell, Serge!"

A laugh escaped his lips as he stepped back. A heated anger surged through me. I looked from Glenn to Kid. They were unconscious… possibly dying… there was so much blood pooling around the blonde girl. With a growl, I managed to pull myself up… but Lynx was still at it. A darkness enveloped my body… his body… the body of this demi-human that had claimed my soul. I felt myself being lifted into the air. I stared, helplessly and weak toward Kid's fallen form.

"Finally, I have the key. The key to the gate of Fate! The time has finally come for the Frozen Flame to awaken!!! Come to the Sea of Eden, Serge... Should you wish to end your dream of 10 years ago…" I glared at Lynx… myself… as he held out the Tear. It began to glow, bathing the stone foundation in sheets of cobalt, reminiscent of the ocean… Clenching my teeth together, I suppressed a scream as the magick worked its way throughout the room, igniting the eyes of the six Dragon God statues, donning the energy. I felt like I was being crushed. The darkness wrapped around me, tightening its hold as Lynx continued to speak in a voice so familiar to me… my own voice… I could hear it, droning through the crashing sound of the statues cracking and exploding, crumbling to the stone floor like pelts of rain. Kid…

"Now, let love bleed! Darker and deeper than the seas of hell!" His chant was followed by a chilling laughter. My gaze went to Kid… to her still form… wanting to be free of this so I could save her… I watched her desperately, before the impending darkness overtook my vision.

Kid… She was there… before me… standing on the calm, white sands of a beach. Her back was to me. The waves lapped up lazily, crossing the shoreline with such a gentle sound. Gulls sounded in the distance as a breeze picked up. The red over shirt that she wore fluttered a bit, along with her long blonde hair. Her gaze was fixed on an island just beyond the waves of the ocean. I started to move toward her. I had to know. Was it really her? Was she alright? Without warning, she spun around, a hand on her hip and looked at me. Her deep blue eyes holding the warmth and friendship that I remembered so well. And a smile came to her lips. A small one of hope and trust. She held out a gloved hand to me, the smile never leaving her face. I reached toward her, to take her hand within my own… but I stopped. I didn't have my hands… I looked down at these… hands of mine. The hands of Lynx. Hands tipped with great ripping claws… hands that kill… hands that belonged to someone that was not me. I pulled back and looked at Kid. Into her deep blue eyes… eyes that didn't see me as Lynx… but saw me as who I was…

Reality came back to me in a flash as I looked into those azure depths… those eyes that reminded me of the cerulean glow of the Tear's shards…

She was gone. I'd seen her demise twice. Neither time could I save her… because in reality, both times…. It had been me… There are two sides to every coin. Life and death… Love and hate… They are all the same… It had been me…

A feeling of nausea overtook me. I was lost in her gaze… a gaze that was snuffed out within moments after a battle we thought we had won… I felt as though I were drowning… suffocating. I didn't take her hand. I couldn't protect her as I had vowed to do… I felt myself falling backwards. Farther and farther away from her. Falling into the depths of the sea that had taken my life in this world so long ago. And as I plunged into the depths of the oceans darkness, the only thing on my mind were thoughts of her.